Canada’s most decorated female speed skater, a world championship skier and an accomplished junior female water polo team are among the amateur athletes being recognized as the Alberta Athletes of the Year for the 2009 season.“These Alberta athletes are a testament to the value of hard work and illustrate the success of our sport development system,” said Cindy Ady, Minister of Tourism, Parks and Recreation. “Congratulations to each award recipient on their outstanding achievements. Albertans celebrate their talent and accomplishments and we are so proud of how they represented our province.  ”

Athletes were nominated for these awards throughout the year. An Awards Selection Committee chose the final recipients, based on the nominees’ performance, achievement and contributions to amateur athletics in Alberta.

“I want to congratulate all of the athletes selected to receive the 2009 awards,” said Bill Persley, Chair of the Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation. “These young athletes are role-models for the next generation of athletes coming up in Alberta.”

The Alberta Athlete of the Year program was created in 2002 by the Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation to recognize the achievements of the province’s amateur athletes.  The Alberta Team of the Year award has been awarded since 2004.

The recipients will be honored as part of the 2010 Alberta Sports Hall of Fame Induction Banquet on May 28 in Red Deer

***While celebrating his 18th birthday, Kurtis Wenzel won three medals at the 2009 Biathlon Youth and Junior World Championships (including a relay medal with RMR teammates Scott Gow and Aaron Gilmor). Following those wins, Kurtis finished his season with first-place finishes in the relay and sprint events at the Canadian National Biathlon Championships.

Check out photos by Ray Schmidt posted on the Mt. Sharkfest page.

After his great 2009-2010 Biathlon season, RMR’s own Kurtis Wenzel, was one of three nominees in the junior category of the national award. Category winner’s will be announced March 3 in Toronto.Finalists include:

Male Athlete of the Year

• Jasey Jay Anderson – Snowboarding
• Charles Hamelin – Speed Skating
• John Kucera - Alpine Skiing

Female Athlete of the Year

• Christine Nesbitt – Speed Skating
• Annamay Pierse - Swimming
• Sherraine Schalm - Fencing

Junior Athlete of the Year

• Aaron Brown – Athletics
• Marianne St-Gelais – Speed Skating
• Kurtis Wenzel - Biathlon

Team of the Year

• Men’s Hockey – IIHF
• Para Curling – Wheelchair Mixed Team
• Women’s Water Polo (WC)

For more information on the awards, visit www.truesportfoundation.ca 

YOUNG CANADIAN BIATHLETES TARGET PODIUM AT YOUTH AND JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

YOUNG CANADIAN BIATHLETES TARGET PODIUM

YOUTH AND JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

 

OTTAWA—Canada will field a total of 16 athletes who will target the podium at the Biathlon Youth and Junior World Championships that will take place in Torsby, Sweden, January 27 to February 2, 2010.

 

On the heels of the Canadian trials, Biathlon Canada has selected eight men and eight women who will be among the world’s most promising junior biathletes while competing in five youth and junior competitions during the 2010 World Championships. The youth category involves athletes that are 17-18 years old, while athletes in the junior category must be 19-20 years old.

 

“Competing at international competitions is a critical component to the continued development of our sport and the World Championships are the first major test in these athletes’ pursuit of their Olympic dream,” said Joanne Thomson, executive director, Biathlon Canada.

 

Headlining the Canadian squad in this year’s event will be seven athletes who combined to win five medals at the 2009 World Championships on their home snow at the Canmore Nordic Centre.

 

Calgary’s Kurtis Wenzel, who won gold, silver and bronze last year, will return in search of a repeat performance in the Youth Men’s category. Wenzel will be joined by medal-winning teammate and fellow Calgarian in last year’s relay, Aaron Gillmor. Calgary’s Christian Gow andQuebec’s Édouard Côté will round out the youth men’s squad.

 

Calgary’s Scott Gow, who joined Wenzel and Gillmor on the silver-medal relay team last year, will move up a category into Junior Men. Gow will be joined by Joel Pacas, of Canmore, Alta., and Matthew Neumann, of Prince George, B.C., who will make their second trip to the international event. David Grégoire, of Chartierville, Que., rounds out the junior men’s team.

 

Two World Championship medallists will lead the Youth and Junior Women’s teams.

 

Audrey Vaillancourt, of Quebec, who won a bronze medal last year in the youth category will return to lead the Youth Women. Vallancourt will be joined by Rose-Marie Côté, of Lévis, Que., Julia Ransom, of Kelowna, B.C., and Emma Lunder, of Vernon, B.C.

 

Quebec’s Yolaine Oddou, who was another bronze medallist in 2009, will compete as a junior woman. Oddou will team up with Tatiana Chesham, of Canmore, Alta., Carly Shiell, of Camrose, and Isabelle Abran, of St-Jean Chrystostôme, Que.

 

“This talented group of athletes represents the future of our sport in Canada and has been making significant progress putting the maple leaf back on the international youth and junior podiums,” said Thomson. “We are looking forward to improving on one of our best-ever performance at the World Youth and Junior Championships where we captured five medals last year.”

 

For more information on the Youth and Junior World Championships, please visithttp://www.biathlonworld3.de/en/events.html/do/showevent?EventId=BT0910JWRLCH__

 

Biathlon Canada, the governing body for biathlon in the country, oversees the Canadian Championships, Eastern and Western Canadian Championships, and North American Cups held in Canada. The organization’s mandate is to provide national level programs for the continuous development of biathlon athletes from the grassroots to the elite level. For more information on Biathlon Canada, please visit their Web site at www.biathloncanada.ca on the Internet.

 

Junior Women:

Yolaine Oddou – Quebec, QC

Tatiana Chesham – Canmore, AB

Carly Shiell – Camrose, AB

Isabelle Abran – St-Jean-Chrystostome, QC

 

Youth Women:

Audrey Vaillancourt – Quebec, QC

Rose-Marie Côté – Lévis, QC

Julia Ransom – Kelowna, BC

Emma Lunder – Vernon, BC

 

Junior Men:

Scott Gow – Calgary, AB

Joel Pacas – Canmore, AB

Matthew Neumann – Prince George, BC

David Grégoire – Chartierville, QC

 

Youth Men:

Kurtis Wenzel – Calgary, AB

Aaron Gillmor – Calgary, AB

Christian Gow – Calgary, AB

Édouard Côté – Quebec, QC

 

Coaching Staff:

Matthias Ahrens – Head Coach Junior Team / Team Leader

Jacqueline Akerman – Assistant Coach Junior Team

John Jaques – Head Coach Youth Team

Michelle Armitage – Assistant Coach Youth Team

Claude Latulippe – Head Wax Technician